words and silence

Daily writing prompt
What are you curious about?
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My day is largely in silence. Yes, I listen to music and the radio (for the news). But there are long periods of silence. (I also read books etc but in silence.)

One thing that has made me curious about this context is how we see language. Or, how metaphor and language interact. Augustine wrote about language before he wrote about Christianity. But we seem to think that we can simply march past the problem and declare absolutely what is (and what is not) a relationship with God.

I have no answers and maybe there isn’t one. But I am curious!

rise

Daily writing prompt
Describe one habit that brings you joy.
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This may sound a little strange – and, well, it is. I like to get up early. I mean really early. Currently, my alarm is set for 4:30 am. Often I am awake before it.

Why so early? I have found that it offers me time for mental prayer. And it provides me silence. I have a cup of tea in darkness without the possibility of interruption. I say Morning Prayer at 5:30 am and listen to the 6:00 am ABC News. And then my day starts!

It is something to which I look forward. It is a habit that brings me much joy.

Day 635 – “abstraction”

One of my favourite Kierkegaard quotes relates to levelling and the power of abstraction:

… leveling is an abstract power and is abstraction’s victory over individuals.

Two Ages: The Age of Revolution and the Present Age A Literary Review, 84

The parish is in a period of transition – moving to welcoming a new vicar. I struggle with change so it is a time of anxiety. And my brain likes to play the “what if” game.

In that context, I was thinking about how I would explain my life. I tried, with little success, to write a rule in the form of a letter like the anchorite guidance literature. Also, I tried to collect Scripture verses to illustrate various precedents. One issue surrounding the solitary life is its very nature: an individual living an individual life. Yes, there is a historical precedent. But, like Lessing, there is an “ugly ditch” between the precedent and the lived experience.

So the first lesson is that maybe I simply need to live. My greatest battle is to surrender the desire (the motivation for my actions) to be accepted and loved. If I live for Jesus alone, I should seek all good things from Him alone! And then, restored and refreshed, I can love my neighbour without seeking something in return. (I am some distance away.)

Is any attempt to define, to abstract this life, really a desire to be admired as a spiritual hero?

Second lesson: my lived experience is beyond abstraction. Perhaps the whole point of the solitary life is a life dedicated to Jesus without further abstraction? Maybe real life is lived in the space beyond definition? A personal relationship is as individual as the persons involved. While there may be common elements, these do not define the relationship.

Just some random thoughts! Anyway …

Day 633 – tears

I am a stickler for references. No reference (which I can check), no quote. But I am breaking my own rules and sharing this quote from Augustine:

This quote summarises “anchorite spirituality”. Affective piety that reflects on the Passion of Jesus.

(So if someone could please give me the reference, I will be eternally thankful.)

Measure and create

Daily writing prompt
What would you change about modern society?
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Let me preface this by saying I am no philosopher, theologian, or sociologist.

I think “modern society” lives with the belief that “if I can measure it, I can create it”. The problem is that it is somewhat true. Yes, physical things can certainly be measured and then created. But what about things like beauty, community, fellowship, or love? Can I measure these and then create them?

The church is not immune. Sometimes people preach a gospel of “let’s do it”. All of that is fine without any thought to sin. God creates community and fellowship by His presence, as He does beauty, not by our agreeing with each other or being “nice”.

So what would I change: the certainty that it is within human reach to create everything.

Anyway …

A Prayer for Vocations to the Religious Life

Lord Jesus Christ,
in your great love you draw all people to yourself:
and in your wisdom you call us to your service.
We pray at this time,
you will kindle in the hearts of men and women
the desire to follow you in the Religious life.
Give to those whom you call,
grace to accept their vocation readily and thankfully,
to make the whole-hearted surrender which you ask of them,
and for love of you, to persevere to the end.
This we ask in your name. Amen.

A Prayer for Vocations to the Religious Life

sleep?

Daily writing prompt
What time do you go to bed and wake up currently?
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I have not answered one of these for some time.

I normally wake at 5ish. Yes, I am a morning person. I have not used an alarm clock in a long time, and I do not use my phone. I simply wake naturally at about the same time. At the moment it is still dark and very cold. Heater on and make a cup of tea.

I either listen to the news or just pray. Sometimes I try to plan my day but it never works out. I try to be ready for my day by 6. I stay in my “bedroom”, which is also my main room, to pray and enjoy a cup of tea. I love watching the sun rise over the water. There is a “no rush” attitude for my mornings.

When do I go to bed? When the sun goes down it is time for bed, as my grandmother used to say. I try to stay in a natural rhythm with the sun. I try to pray a little and then sleep.

Day 627 – reform


All go without trousers and lambskins. They abstain from the eating of fat and meat… They have a care for silence all the time and wear no dyed clothing. They work with their own hands to provide food and clothing for themselves. They fast from 13 September until Easter, except on Sundays. They bar their entrances and allow no access to the interior [of the monastery]… By their own work they have founded monasteries in deserts and wooded places.

Ordericus Vitalis on the Cistercian life.

“Go without trousers”? So glad there was a habit for them to wear.